Suspected killer arrested after crash ends high-speed chase

BELOIT — A high-speed chase through two states in a stolen vehicle ended when suspected killer Terence Doddy crashed into tree.

Doddy, 36, had been hiding from police since a warrant was issued for his arrest Tuesday in the slaying of his longtime friend Todd Hansmeier, 37, of Rockford. Hansmeier, a community activist who worked extensively with IGNITE Rockford, was found dead Monday at a call center where Doddy worked.

Doddy also is suspected of killing Tonya Bargman, 44, of Monticello as she left the Willow Creek Rest Area bathroom Tuesday on Interstate 39 near Paw Paw. Police said he stole her gray 2013 Nissan Altima and returned to the Rockford area.

A massive overnight manhunt turned up empty-handed. But the vehicle was spotted by a Rockton police officer around 10:15 a.m. today near the vacant Sand Trap Bar in Rockton, Rockford police said in a news statement.

The Altima was hidden in a tree-covered area behind the building. Doddy fled while the officer was waiting for backup to arrive.

Doddy was then spotted by an Illinois State Police trooper near South Beloit and refused to stop. Instead, he led state police, Winnebago County deputies, Beloit police, Town of Beloit police and Rock County deputies on a high-speed pursuit.

Doddy reached speeds above 100 mph during some portions of the pursuit, which went into Wisconsin and back into Illinois through Shirland, ultimately ending on Highway 81 in the Town of Beloit.

Dave and Denise Larsen were listening to the pursuit on a police scanner and heard the chase headed in their direction. So they sat on a picnic table outside their house on Highway 81, expecting to see Doddy and a parade of police cars race by. Instead, they saw Doddy lose control of the car while trying to avoid police stop-sticks and crash into a ditch, soar about 5 feet into the air, crash through one pine tree and a chain-link fence, and smash to a stop in a front-end collision with another pine in their neighbor’s yard.

“He broke that tree like it was a toothpick,” Denise said. “I thought for sure he was dead. We all did.”

Doddy was injured but not incapacitated. Police arrived almost immediately and pulled Doddy from the vehicle, Larsen said. He was arrested after a short struggle just before 11:50 a.m.

Doddy was taken to a hospital in Rock County for treatment of nonlife-threatening injuries received in the crash.

When he’s released from the hospital, Doddy will be taken to Rock County Jail and held on the Rockford police warrant for first-degree murder and domestic battery, pending extradition to Winnebago County.

The criminal investigation is being conducted by the Rockford Police Department and Illinois State Police. The traffic crash is being investigated by the Rock County Sheriff’s Department.

Jennifer Gonfiantini was in her garage on Highway 81 when she heard the sound of crunching metal and saw the vehicle headed straight toward her. It stopped in a cluster of pine trees in her front yard.

“I was debating whether or not to get out of the way because I wasn’t sure the tree was going to stop him, because the first one didn’t,” she said. “I just hope the family can get some peace, knowing that he’s been apprehended. I can’t imagine what’s going through their mind.”